01
Independence
We do not buy, sell or broker. We hold no stake in the items we examine and accept no consignments. Our incentives are aligned with truth, not turnover.
Volume X · Est. MMXIV · Issue №48
The standard for fine collectibles.
Xene Ltd is an independent house of authentication, grading and certification. For over a decade we have stewarded the world's most valuable coins, bank notes, stamps, cards and rare books — with the discretion of a private bank and the rigour of a museum.
- 2014
- Established in London
- 1.2M+
- Items certified to date
- 40
- Countries served
- 11
- On-staff specialists
Featured Plate I
Roman aureus of Marcus Aurelius — graded MS-65 by Xene, Cert. №08632102.
The Practice
A house built on quiet rigour.
Founded in 2014 in London's Hatton Garden, Xene was created in answer to a simple problem: collectors of fine objects deserved a grading authority that combined scientific method with the decorum of the trade.
Today, our specialists serve private collectors, family offices, museums and the principal auction houses across forty countries. Every item we receive passes through a documented chain of custody, a multi-stage examination, two independent grading passes and a sealed encapsulation built to archival standards.
We do not buy, sell or broker. Our only product is judgement — and the certificate that records it. That certificate, signed by two specialists and underwritten by Lloyd's of London, carries a lifetime guarantee of authenticity.
Read the full storyDisciplines
Five specialisms. One standard.
Plate 01 · Numismatics
Coins
Ancient, world and modern issues — from Roman aurei to modern proofs.
Plate 02
Bank Notes
Historic paper currency, error notes and specimen issues from every continent.
Plate 03
Trading Cards
Vintage sport, non-sport and modern TCG — sealed and raw, encapsulated to museum standard.
Plate 04
Stamps
Philatelic rarities, classics and covers — graded for centring, gum and freshness.
Plate 05
Rare Books & Manuscripts
First editions, signed copies and antiquarian works in archival clamshell housings.
The Xene Holder
An archive, made to last.
Each item is sealed inside an inert, museum-grade acrylic holder, machined from a single billet at our atelier in Surrey. Every holder carries six layers of authentication.
- ◇
Optical-grade acrylic
UV-stable to 380nm; will not yellow for a century under archival conditions.
- ◇
Inert microfibre cradle
Holds the item without contact stress or chemical leaching.
- ◇
Laser-engraved certificate №
Pico-second pulses cut a serial number into the rim. Mechanically indelible.
- ◇
Embedded NFC chip
Tap a phone to retrieve the certificate from our public registry.
- ◇
Tamper-evident sonic weld
Cannot be opened without visibly destroying the seal.
- ◇
Gold-foil house label
Printed in our London studio; the typography is unique to Xene.
200× magnification
XRF metallurgy
UV examination
The Process
Seven stages, one verdict.
- 01
Intake & Chain of Custody
Insured receipt, photographed and assigned a Xene case number.
- 02
Provenance Review
Historical records, hallmarks and prior ownership documented.
- 03
Authentication
Comparative spectroscopy, magnification and specialist consensus.
- 04
Grading
Two specialists grade independently; a finaliser reconciles.
- 05
Encapsulation
Archival, tamper-evident holder with embedded security mark.
- 06
Certification
Signed certificate, public registry entry, lifetime guarantee.
- 07
Return
Insured, discreet shipping by appointed courier.
Service Tiers
Calibrated to your collection.
30 days
Standard
£60
Single items up to £5,000 declared value. Full grading and encapsulation. Suitable for most retail and collector submissions.
10 days
Express
£180
Priority handling for items up to £25,000. A dedicated specialist; courier-pickup within the UK included.
Bespoke
Private Office
On request
Estates, museum collections and items above £100,000. On-site visits worldwide; conservator consultation included.
All tiers include the Xene archival holder, paper certificate, public registry entry and the lifetime guarantee of authenticity. Submissions of 25 items or more receive a 12% volume rebate.
Full pricing scheduleThe Certificate
A lifetime, in writing.
Every item we certify is accompanied by a hand-signed paper certificate, registered to your name in our public archive, and underwritten for life by Lloyd's of London.
Should any item we have certified ever be proven inauthentic, Xene undertakes to compensate the bearer at the prevailing market value — transferable, indefinite, and printed on the certificate itself.
Our standards
Testimony
"Xene's certificate is the only one I will accept on a coin I cannot personally examine. Their judgement has, on more than one occasion, saved my house from grave embarrassment."
— Director of Numismatics, European Auction House
Clientele
Trusted by the houses, institutions and private collections that set the market.
Sotheby's
Christie's
Bonhams
Spink
Heritage Auctions
Stanley Gibbons
Dix Noonan Webb
Künker
Bertoia
British Museum
Royal Mint Museum
MFA Boston
Clients are listed with prior consent. Many institutional and private engagements remain confidential by request.
Why Xene
Three commitments, unchanged since 2014.
02
Consensus
Two senior specialists grade every item independently. A finaliser reconciles. No grade leaves our office without unanimous agreement.
03
Indemnity
Every Xene certificate is underwritten by Lloyd's for the lifetime of the item. The guarantee is transferable and printed on the certificate.
Visit · By Appointment
48 Hatton Garden, London.
The Xene office occupies a five-storey Georgian townhouse in the heart of London's historic jewellery quarter. Examination rooms are below ground, in a former gem vault converted to climate- controlled laboratories. The drawing room above receives clients for consultation and tea, served at four.
Items left with us are stored in a Class III vault rated to UL Insurance Standard 687. International clients are met by appointment; our specialists travel to private collections worldwide.
Arrange a visitBegin
Entrust your collection to a quieter authority.
Speak with a specialist in confidence. We respond within one working day and accept items from any country, by appointed insured courier.
Request a submission